Company linked to 4,000 rescued beagles forced to pay $35M in fines

An Indianapolis-based company pleaded guilty to animal welfare and water pollution crimes at a now-shuttered dog-breeding facility in Virginia where, two years ago, the U.S. Department of Justice ordered the surrender of more than 4,000 beagles that would have been sold to laboratories for drug experiments.

Envigo RMS, owned by Inotiv, reached an agreement with the Justice Department that has the company paying more than $35 million in fines — the largest ever fine in an Animal Welfare Act case, the DOJ announced Monday. Inotiv will be subject to increased animal care standards and a compliance monitor, according to the resolution.

Envigo RMS was an animal testing facility based in Cumberland, Virginia, that the Department of Agriculture said in an inspection report had more than 300 puppy deaths the facility didn't investigate further. The department added Envigo also didn't try to prevent future losses. In June 2022, a U.S. District Court judge issued a restraining order and Inotiv announced the facility's closure.

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Inotiv, which acquiredEnvigo RMS in 2021, is a research organization geared toward bringing drugs and medical devices through various testing phases, according to the company’s website.

“Today’s agreement will allow us to comprehensively resolve this matter, bringing to an end uncertainty around the investigation,” Inotiv said in a statement on its website. “Inotiv’s top priority has always been — and remains — practicing appropriate standards of animal welfare for our animals, while supporting the scientific objectives of the studies conducted.”

The DOJ said Envigo RMS prioritized profits over following the law.

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According to the DOJ release, Envigo RMS conspired to knowingly violate the Animal Welfare Act by failing to provide adequate veterinary care, staffing and safe living conditions for the beagles housed at its facility. The rescued beagles were made available for adoption.

“Even in those instances of animals being bred for scientific and medical research purposes, they still must be provided with safe and sanitary living conditions,” Charmeka Parker, special agent in charge of the Department of Agriculture’s Office of Inspector General, said in the DOJ release.

The company also conspired to knowingly violate the Clean Water Act by failing to properly operate and maintain the wastewater treatment plant at its facility, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. This led to massive unlawful discharges of insufficiently treated wastewater into a local waterway, negatively impacting the health and well-being of the community, as well as the dogs.

“Everyone victimized in this precedent-setting animal welfare case deserved better: the workers, the beagles, the environment and the community,” David M. Uhlmann, assistant administrator of the EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, said Monday. “Envigo deserves every dollar of its record fine.”

As part agreement and record-setting payments, $22 million in criminal fines are to be paid over four years. The companies will also pay at least $7 million to improve their facilities beyond the standards of the Animal Welfare Act. Additional funding will go to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the Humane Society of the United States and the Virginia Animal Fighting Task Force.

Contact reporter Sarah Bowman by email at sarah.bowman@indystar.com. Follow her on X:@IndyStarSarah.

IndyStar's environmental reporting project is made possible through the generous support of the nonprofit Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust.